


I'll Do Anything (Just For You)

by Dusty_Skyes



Series: Hard Reverse [3]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: ALL ABOARD THE ANGST TRAIN, I Tried, Kinda, M/M, Mentioned suicide, Role Reversal, Slash, Time Travel, ace!Shepard, does this count as role reversal?, genderless!Shepard, i blame Kuraiummei for this, i blame them for all my ME stories really, i'd be sorry but that requires shame and i misplaced my own years ago, no really i'm not kidding, seruius AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-11
Updated: 2017-02-11
Packaged: 2018-09-23 14:18:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9660890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dusty_Skyes/pseuds/Dusty_Skyes
Summary: Just because there must be a villain doesn't mean that it must be the same person every time.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kuraiummei](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kuraiummei/gifts).



> This is [Kuraiummei's](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Kuraiummei/pseuds/Kuraiummei) fault.

He'll never get what he wants. Never. Nihlus will never love him like he does Saren. He'll never look at him the way he does Saren. Nihlus will never smile in his direction, not like he does to Saren. He'll always be left holding half of his heart in his hands.

He wants to hate Saren, hate him for stealing away the holder of his heart, but he can't begrudge the other. Nihlus and Saren; they were happy together, even after Sovereign nearly destroyed everything. Then the Council decides that it needs to take charge. A scapegoat is needed for the destruction of the Citadel. Saren's the logical choice and despite Nihlus' protesting, despite Shepard's horror, Saren's life is snuffed out.

Nihlus falls into despair after that. A dark shadow covers his heart; a coldness that not even the heat of the sun can melt, and the _torin_ throws himself into missions.

He's certain that the carmine-plated Turian is waiting for his own end.

In the end, not even two weeks after Saren's death, Nihlus' own life is snuffed out. He doesn't go down to an enemy, nor does he fall in a blaze of glory. Instead he takes it himself, slumping down in a pool of his own blood. His heart breaks to see Nihlus so still, so empty, and he knows that there must be _something_ he can do.

And when the Council refuses to let them bury Nihlus next to Saren, they take matters into their own hands. Underneath the cover of darkness, the crew of the _Normandy_ buries them together in the same coffin. He keeps watch while they do it, Viper in his hands and filled to the brim with sleep darts that can take out Krogan.

Two days later, he finishes the machine, a product of hundreds of sleepless nights, and activates it.

Instantly, his time-line is gone, swept away in the shadows of the future.

Sigrun is his name now, no matter who he used to be with his blue _Familia Notas_ that he no longer wears, and he laughs darkly when he sees Saren easily taking out an opponent. Nihlus will never love him, not the way he loves Saren, but the least he can do is make sure that they're together in the end.

He goes out of his way to find the Reaper Technology that had ensnared Saren the first time and collects it. And as he feels his mind slip away into the darkness that is Sovereign, he smiles, knowing full well that this time things will be different.

Just because there must be a villain doesn't mean that it must be the same person every time.

**oOo**

_'It's just a mission,'_ Nihlus reminds himself, leaning against a wall in the CIC. Something feels off though, a sort of wrongness that screams at him to be careful. The ship, the _Normandy_ , is on its way to Eden Prime, and he's tagging along to see how Shepard does on this sort of trip. The Human is being tested to be a Spectre and, no matter how much Saren grumbles about it, Nihlus thinks that it's about time. Once, several years ago, Captain Anderson had been a choice. But the elder man had refused, politely explaining why.

“It's not really my cup of tea,” he had said with a wistful smile, “so I'd best leave the pot for others.” At the time, Nihlus hadn't understood. Now he does, though. Shepard is who Anderson had been referring to all those years ago. Spectre is exactly this redheaded Human's pot of tea and Shepard seems to be taking to it like a duck to water.

But something's still off though, and his feelings are only enforced when they get the message from the surface of the planet.

“There's a ruined village here,” he later informs the others through the communicator after they've landed and discovered the geth. “I'm going to check it out.” The crunch of things underneath is feet is unnerving. He refuses to check and see if any of it is the white of bone.

“ _Understood_ ,” Shepard says. “ _Please leave your communicator on, Spectre Kryik. I've got a really bad feeling about this._ ”

“Same here,” Nihlus admits, and then slips through the remains of what used to be houses. There aren't any corpses, and he quiets his breath as he moves. Coming around a corner, he pauses. There, standing in the center of the remains, is a Turian, arms crossed as they look out over the cliff. They look rather similar to Saren, with their white-gray plates and fringe, but their hide is brown instead of gray and they don't have any Valluvian horns. Blue, so deep it's almost black, armor covers their form and there's a M-103 Orb Weaver sniper rifle across their back. They're not facing him, and all he can see is the back of their head. Nihlus draws his weapon and carefully steps out of hiding. “Excuse me,” he calls, every nerve tensed in preparation.

The _torin_ turns to face him. Nihlus pauses and takes in the rest of their features. A good chunk of the right half of their, his actually, face is scarred. He's not wearing any _Familia Notas_ either, face as bare as Saren's own. Icy colored eyes watch Nihlus quietly, subvocals quiet, almost empty. “Do you need something?” the other asks, voice smooth and low, the rumble of his bass cords doing awful things to Nihlus' libido.

“Yes, actually. Did you see what happened here?”

Mandibles spread just slightly. “A little.” Strong, muscled arms uncross and the _torin_ points towards the area where the Beacon lies. “The geth are trying to get the Beacon from there.”

Suspicion niggles at Nihlus' mind. “And how do you know that?” he asks, taking a step back and sliding his finger onto the trigger of his gun.

The Turian smiles, dark shadows crossing his face. “Because I told them to,” he says and whips the Weaver off of his back before Nihlus can move. Three shots echo out and the carmine-plated Turian falls, blood spilling freely from his stomach. “Sovereign wishes you goodbye, Spectre,” the _torin_ purrs with blank subvocals, shoulders the rifle, and steps over his form towards the rocks, vanishing on their other side.

Nihlus coughs roughly and manages to tap his communicator. “Shepard,” he rasps into the mic.

“ _Shepard here. What happened? We heard gunshots._ ”

“I need medical assistance right now.”

There's silence on the other side. “ _Injuries,_ ” Shepard snaps and Nihlus can hear the crunch of gravel underneath the human's feet as they run.

“Gut wound,” he manages. “Blew right through my fucking armor like it wasn't there.” A moment later, Shepard crests the hill, takes one look at his injuries, and curses loudly.

Nihlus chooses that moment to pass out.

**oOo**

In the back of his mind, Sovereign praises him, whispering darkness into his ears as he boards the ship. It lifts off from Eden Prime, engines humming as it heads into the sky, leaving a mile long depression below. He heads towards his room, needing the reason why he stepped into the past in the first place. Once in his room, the door closed and locked, Sovereign's presence a little less there, Sigrun finds the sheet of paper he had first scribbled the note on all those years ago, hidden away in the carved out center of a book.

'For them,' it reads, and memories of Saren and Nihlus flicker in his mind's eye, brought back by those two words. No matter how hard Sovereign tries, it can't quite erase Sigrun's reason for existing in the first place. Hopefully, maybe, Nihlus will survive Eden Prime this time. He doesn't mention the idea, doesn't mention the very real possibility—gut wounds may be messy, but they're rarely threatening if treated quickly—of Nihlus surviving to Sovereign. A smirk spreads across his mandibles.

He laughs darkly as he leaves his room and stalks through the halls of Sovereign, occasionally flickering his gaze to the windows as the ship makes its way through the stars.

_**Good** _ , Sovereign whispers in the back of his head. _**Now for the next part** _.

“Of course,” he agrees out loud, slipping deeper into the shadows that shackle his mind.

There is no light. Only never ending darkness.

_This time things will be different._

**oOo**

He first meets Shepard face to face on Vimire, deep within the lab there. Sovereign has ordered him to create the cure to Krogan sterility and he does so, knowing full well that the lab will soon be destroyed. The alarms go off, signaling intruders within his domain and Sigrun turns with a false smile plastered across his mandibles as he makes his way outside with Weaver in hand.

Shepard is exactly as he remembers; redheaded, bright with life and energy and anger. Beside them is who he used to be, young and furious with bright blue markings and no scar. On Shepard's other side stands the Krogan, Wrex; red eyes and scar so familiar. He can't sense Nihlus but takes note of Saren's presence, removing him from the fight by jump-kicking him over the nearest cliff before anyone can react. Sigrun knows perfectly well that the other will be fine, it's not that high up, but it will give him enough time to get off the planet safely. “Well, well, well,” he purrs, subvocals blank and empty. “What do we have here? Rats come to mess up Sovereign's plans.”

“How fucking dare you,” Shepard spits. “You shot Kryik!”

' _Shot_ ', Sigrun thinks, _'Shot',_ _not 'killed'_. “So?” he asks, laughing deliriously. “Bah, it does not matter. You are here now _and_ in my way.” Shadows curl around his feet, powers granted by Sovereign, and spike up, barely missing his opponents. “Therefore you must be eliminated.” He takes a step forward and then lunges, Weaver swinging around as he fires off shots. One through the Krogan's shoulder, one through Vakarian's leg, and then he lunges forward, slamming Shepard to the ground and pressing the barrel against their forehead. “I guess you lose,” he purrs.

Then an explosion rattles through the area, the lab going up in flames. Sovereign screams loudly in the back of his head, furious beyond measure, and descends through the clouds. Sigrun stands up, shoulders his rifle, and leaps up in a bound of darkness, easily landing in the entrance of the cargo bay. The doors close in front of him and he turns and vanishes deeper into the ship, shadows dogging his feet every step of the way.

He can't think anymore.

Existence is futile; there is no life, only Sovereign.

**oOo**

Sigrun knows they're there, slinking through the depths of Sovereign as he works on activating the Citadel Relay. With this, the Reapers can appear directly in the heart of the area, consuming everyone before they can react. Sovereign laughs in the back of his mind, loud and dark and full of gleeful victory, and the _torin_ smiles in response. Soon it will all be over.

“How dare you!” Shepard snarls the moment they step into the room.

“Oh, look.” Sigrun turns to face the others, madness painted across his mandibles. “Here to try again at ruining Sovereign's plans?” He yanks Weaver off of his back and lunges forward. The others, however, seem to have figured out his movements, as they dodge quickly, leaping out of the way of his bullets before they can hit. Sigrun skids back, leaps over Shepard's biotic rush, and plants a foot directly into Vakarian's face, rebounding off of the other before attempting to kick the Asari in the side. They dodge, launching a biotic attack that rebounds off of his shadow barrier.

For a second, Sigrun wonders where Arterius is.

Sovereign screams loudly in the back of his mind, demanding the blood of the interlopers. Sigrun does his best to ignore it, vaulting over attackers and using his shadows to manipulate the room. Vakarian falls to a well placed shot to the shoulder, removing his ability to fire Viper. The Asari ducks to the side, hides behind a crate in an attempt to catch their breath, and Sigrun focuses on Shepard.

The redhead is still standing, furious beyond belief, and lunges forward in a vicious biotic rush that Sigrun is barely able to dodge. He vaults over backwards, calls upon Sovereign's shadows and lets them do what they want.

He falls a little further into the darkness with every step. The cybernetics Sovereign planted inside of him buzz with every twitch of his finger. Sigrun snarls furiously, most of the anger not his own, and leaps backwards, his calves brushing up against one of Sovereign's support pillars.

A warning rings in his mind, instincts bright and strong, and he hurls himself out of the way just as Kryik and Arterius drop from the ceiling, gunfire barely missing his rolling form.

In that split second, at the sight of Kryik alive and strong, Sovereign's control over Sigrun's mind _slips;_ just a little, but it's enough. The _torin's_ hand whips out and he snags several grenades from his belt, hurling them with pinpoint accuracy. They land with dull thuds and roll to a halt, each one resting against one of the ship's support structures. With a laugh that grows darker as Sovereign regains control of his mind, Sigrun turns and activates the self-destruct. **Self-destruct activated. T-minus 2 minutes and 30 seconds.**

“Fuck!” Kryik nearly shrieks, whirls around, and bolts for the door. The others follow close behind him, leaving Sigrun behind to laugh manically in the CIC of Sovereign. **T-minus 2 minutes and 25 seconds.**

The moment they're gone, however, he leaps into action, racing down one of the side halls towards a back entrance just as the grenades go off. Sovereign screams in his mind, the ship shaking as it struggles to stay aloft. He rebounds off of a wall, grabs a rafter that he'd insisted Sovereign put in, and starts running across them, well above the panicked geth darting through the halls. If he can just make it to his ship...

**T-minus 2 minutes,** he hears as he vaults out a window, activates the stealth program he'd written himself, and heads directly for the ship docks. His ship is already waiting for him when he gets there, humming and ready for take-off. The doors close behind him and Sigrun heads for the CIC.

**5,** echoes in his brain as his baby spirals into orbit.

**4.**

**3.**

**2.**

**1,** Sigrun hears, followed shortly by, **0** , and then Sovereign's wordless scream of fury. He glances out the window just in time to see the Reaper ship go up in flames, and then collapses to the floor with a cry of pain when Sovereign suddenly goes blissfully silent. Blood dribbles down his face, leaking from his orifices and onto the cool metal below his prone form.

He loses consciousness, satisfied with the knowledge that this time he has managed to save both Nihlus _and_ Saren.

**oOo**

Shepard sighs as they sit in the _Normandy_ and turns to look out the window at the remains of Sovereign drifting in Citadel's atmosphere. They can't help but wonder who the other Turian was, the insane one with the Weaver. He was strong and a definite pain in the ass to fight. Shepard huffs a breath and wonders if the other perished when Sovereign went up in flames.

They're forced to put their thoughts away hours later, when the _Normandy_ is pretty much sliced in two. And in the end, satisfied that everyone else is safe, Commander Shepard's bright light is snuffed out in the depths of space.

**oOo**

_Two years is a long time to be dead_ , Shepard thinks with a mental groan. They wonder what has happened in their absence. At least they have their crew again. Along with new members to boot. Also, that relationship thing that seems to be blooming between Garrus and Thane is ridiculous and glorious at the same time. Shepard hopes that those two can figure out a way to make it work. Garrus hasn't exactly been the most confident _torin_ since he took that rocket to the face.

Shepard is, after all, going to want _all_ the details, _especially_ the juicy ones. Just because they're ace doesn't mean they can't enjoy all the yummy tidbits of another being's sex-life.

The Citadel looms in front of them, strong and regal, and the Cerberus ship touches down. Shepard steps off, Garrus at their side, and is immediately set upon by Kryik, who sweeps them up and spins them around. Arterius nods politely at them. “Welcome back,” he says smoothly.

Shepard blinks. “Thank you?” they ask, then add, “What are you two doing here?”

Kryik grins widely and sets them back onto the ground. “We're coming with you, that's what! Official Spectre business if anyone asks.” He winks.

Saren sighs. “There have been rumors that the _torin_ from the ship Sovereign has been sighted around New Eden.” Beside him, Kryik makes a face.

“I kinda want to punch him. In the face. With something sharp. I mean, as good looking as that bastard was, I'm still a little pissed about being shot in the stomach three times.”

“There's still something I'm not understanding,” Saren adds, sounding vaguely frustrated. “Throughout that final fight, that _torin's_ subvocals were silent.”

Nihlus blinks. “The entire time?”

Garrus sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose. “Yes, Spectre Kryik. _I_ noticed that, and I was a bit busy trying to _not_ get killed. That bastard had impeccable control over those damn shadows; he nearly speared me several times. He _did_ catch my ribs once _and_ broke my mandibles with a foot to the face. Not to mention the bullet to my shoulder.” He trails off, pausing for a long moment. “Did anyone else notice that he never tried to kill us? Not once?”

“He shot me,” Nihlus deadpans. “Three times. In the stomach.”

Saren nods slowly, almost as if he's thinking it over. “Gut wounds are messy, but rarely fatal if treated promptly. From what you told me, the _torin_ could have easily head-shotted you right then and there.”

Nihlus sighs, thinking it over. “That is true.”

Shepard rolls their eyes. “Can we get moving now? Or are you three going to stand around gossiping like little old ladies?”

Garrus blinks at them. “Since when are Turians 'little'?”

“Since Arterius. I know _Humans_ that are taller than him,” the Commander returns flatly, spins on the heel of their foot, and vanishes into the ship. Nihlus cracks up laughing, hands on his stomach as he follows the redhead inside. Garrus snorts loudly, wraps an arm around Saren's bicep, and steers the irritated Spectre inside.

**oOo**

They're halfway to the Mass Relay leading to New Eden when a small ship whirls out of nowhere, _Frostfire_ written across a wing and a multitude of colors crackling over its form. It circles the _Normandy_ once, and then hovers just in front of the ship, front windows facing the CIC. Shepard blinks at it, watches as it twirls once, then twists around so that it's flying right by the _Normandy's_ CIC window.

Saren pinches the bridge of his nose with a sigh, brow-plates drawing in. “I do believe it wants us to follow it.” The ship draws forward, speed increasing as it makes a beeline towards the Mass Relay, spinning every now and then in what is clearly boredom as it loops back around.

“Well excuse me for not having the fastest ship in the universe,” Shepard mutters. EDI hums.

**Coming up on the Mass Relay for New Eden, Commander.**

“Thanks, EDI.”

Beside them, the smaller ship whirls once and shifts out of the way, leaving the path to the Mass Relay open. Then a dome of multicolored light forms around it and the ship _jumps_ , vanishing into hyperdrive without going anywhere _near_ the Relay. Kryik presses his face against the glass as Joker steers the _Normandy_ into the Relay, slingshotting them across the system and into the next one. “Holy shit,” he breathes.

“Goddamn,” Shepard says, then adds, “Is that even possible?”

The small ship is already there, waiting for them as it floats up and down. “Apparently it is,” Saren says, his eyes gleaming, and he sounds like he can't wait to get his hands on the coding. Nihlus huffs a laugh.

“Only you, Saren, only you.”

Ahead of the _Normandy_ , the ship spins once again and boosts, rocketing off towards New Eden. It circles around the planet three times and then dives down towards the surface, vanishing into the atmosphere. “Follow it,” Shepard snaps.

Joker sighs. “Commander, this ship won't fit. You'll have to take the smaller one.”

“Then get moving!” the redhead barks as they start running towards the cargo hold. “Nihlus, Saren, Garrus, you're with me!”

“Boss, yes, boss,” Garrus calls cheerfully and breaks into a quick job, shoving Viper up onto his shoulder. Nihlus laughs and follows close behind, Saren hot on his heels.

**oOo**

The small ship quickly spirals down to the surface, whirling through the clouds. Shepard stands at the window in the CIC, frowning. Their gaze sweeps back and forth as they attempt to locate the ship that had disappeared through the clouds before them. “There,” Garrus calls from behind them, pointing to a large plateau of land up ahead. The small ship is lounging upon it and Shepard calls their own to a halt, stepping cautiously outside.

Nothing. Not even a single glimpse of movement. They step closer, guns ready. Saren breathes in slowly, running the air through his mouth. “'Bout time you got here,” someone murmurs.

Nihlus curses loudly. Garrus leaps backwards, Viper coming up. On top of the ship, someone rolls over onto their back, sits up, and dangles their feet over the edge. It's the Turian from the ship, Sovereign, and Shepard snarls, “What do you want?!”

He laughs. “I just want to talk, mmm'kay? No weapons, promise.” The Turian hums lazily for a moment as he stares up at the sky and Saren tilts his head.

“He's not lying,” the silver-gray-plated _torin_ quietly tells Shepard. “His subvocals are completely honest.”

“See?” the other calls from his position on his ship, “I'm not lying. Incidentally, I have ears from hell.”

Shepard coughs. “I noticed. What, then, do you want?”

“I think I'll introduce myself first. My name's Sigrun.” Sigrun settles a little and then hops off of the roof of his ship. Shadows curl upwards, wreathe their way around his legs, and he lands without a sound. “You know that Sovereign was a Reaper ship, right?”

“Yes,” Shepard says, then mutters, “even if the Council won't believe it.”

Sigrun snorts and then says with a sigh, “As usual, the Council is filled with morons who have their heads shoved so far up their asses, they're seeing through their mouths.” Nihlus cracks up, choking on his laughter as he frantically tries to stifle his subvocals. “In any case, Sovereign is basically a big mind-controlling ship.” He frowns and looks away. “It replaces your morals, thoughts, and ideals with its own. The longer you're on it, the harder it is to resist.”

“So you...”

“Correct.” Sigrun looks vaguely embarrassed. “I was not under my own control. Believe me, if I was, I wouldn't have shot Kryik. I'm actually kind of fond of you and your mentor. Spectre holds a special place in my heart.”

Saren raises a single brow-plate. “Really?”

“Oh, yeah. My _pari_ really hated Spectre. I hate him. Therefore, it's only logical to be extremely fond of Spectre.”

Nihlus snorts. “Sounds about right.”

“As I was saying,” Sigrun continues, “I knew you'd survive that gut wound. Arterius would be a pissy Turian if you didn't, so...” He trails off and shrugs. “Sovereign was not aware of your continued survival, so when you dropped down from the ceiling on the ship, the damn thing's control over me slipped. It was just enough for me to throw grenades into the support structures and then activate the self-destruct. Then I ran for it. Made it to my ship and got the hell off the Citadel. Was about halfway through the atmosphere when Sovereign exploded. Apparently it had a better grip on my mind than I thought because I passed out from the pain. Woke up about a week later in a dried up pool of my own blood with a massive headache.”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Shepard says. “Anything else?”

Sigrun sighs. “Yeah. Sovereign made modifications to me. My framework's been fucked with, I have cybernetic eyes that enable me to snipe without a scope, and a whole host of other things.” He shrugs lazily and shifts his weight. “None of it was consensual of course, but what Sovereign wants, Sovereign gets.”

Garrus covers his mouth with a hand, Nihlus swears viciously, Saren growls, and Shepard looks like they're wishing they could blow the ship up again.

“Naturally,” Sigrun continues, “there _are_ a few other things, too. I wasn't Sovereign's first choice for minion. I just happened to be unlucky enough to stumble upon the artifact that allowed Sovereign control of my mind. No, that would have been you, Arterius. That thing wanted you.”

Nihlus breathes in sharply and lunges, grabbing Saren and holding him tight. Saren, eyes huge, doesn't complain.

Sigrun laughs cheerfully and waves a hand. The talons decorating it look too sharp; fake. “But that's in the past. I'm free now and I want to thank you for that.”

Shepard raises a single brow. “Oh? Really?”

“Yeah. I did some research here a while back and discovered something _interesting_ . I think you'll be _very_ interested, Commander.” Sigrun smirks, mandibles spreading wide, and leaps off of the plateau, neatly flipping in the air thrice before landing silently on the ground below. “Are you coming?” he calls up, pulling Weaver off of his back and gesturing towards the trees. “I promise I'm not going to shoot you.”

Nihlus hops off of the plateau, bounces off several rock faces, and lands on the ground with a puff of dirt. Saren appears beside him without a sound. “Sloppy landing, Nihlus.”

“Oh, hush,” the carmine-plated Turian returns. “I wasn't trying to be quiet.”

“Stupid, overpowered, over-graceful Spectres,” Shepard grumbles as they finish climbing down and stomp over. Behind them, Garrus snickers.

Sigrun laughs even harder. “You know that you can get the Spectre upgrades, right? Good ones?” He turns and heads towards the woods, picking up his pace until Shepard has to order him to slow down. “Sorry 'bout that. Sovereign's modifications mean that I have a ton of energy to burn off.” The _torin_ leaps upwards and starts bouncing off of the trees, darting from branch to branch in a dark blue blur.

He spins around in a clearing and then heads towards where the Beacon was originally found.

“Here,” Sigrun says, eventually skidding to a halt. Shepard breathes raggedly, hands on their knees, Garrus eyes the nearest stream like he wants to shove his face into it and never stop drinking, Nihlus bounces on his feet, and Saren doesn't look the slightest bit winded. Shepard decides they hate him a little.

“What... what is here?” Shepard asks once they manage to catch their breath.

A smirk crawls across Sigrun's face and he turns and vanishes into a nearby, mostly hidden tunnel. “This way!”

They manage to catch up to him when he skids to a halt within the remains of a ruined city. Shepard looks around slowly, an eyebrow rising until it's hidden within their hair. “What...what is this?”

Sigrun glances around. “This? It's the remains of a Prothean City. There are stasis pods here.”

Nihlus blinks at him. “....Aaaannndddd?”

The _torin_ grins, sharp—too sharp, too fake—teeth gleaming in the dim light, and points down a hall. “Most of them are destroyed.”

“Most?” Saren asks.

“I found one still working. The being inside is alive. You, Commander Shepard, would have the _last_ Prothean on your team.”

The group stares at him with wide eyes and Sigrun laughs, turns, and saunters down the cavernous hall that leads to Javik's stasis pod. “Here,” he says when they eventually catch up to him, standing over Javik's eternal rest. “This is it. Normally you'd need to find the radio signal _and_ the access code, but I've already done the hard stuff for you. All I have to do is broadcast it and open the pod.” The _torin_ pauses and glances at them. “You ready?”

“Yes!” Nihlus nearly shrieks. Saren looks far more interested in the prospect of actually meeting a Prothean than slapping his student for being loud. With a nod, Sigrun transmits the signal.

“Wait for it to authorize,” he says, “then it'll activate the stasis pod's final function, signaling that the occupant is to be woken up.” There's a faint beep and then Sigrun nods decisively. “There. Now for the code.” He saunters forward and presses a hand against a hidden button, popping open the protective plate that conceals a keyboard. With a few taps, he enters the correct series and then steps back as a hiss escapes the pod. It hums loudly, then clicks, and the stasis pod slides open, revealing the frost covered form of a Prothean.

“Gods,” Shepard breathes as all of them watch as color floods back into the unconscious form.

Sigrun holds out an arm. “Back up. It's been 50,000 years for us, but only minutes for him. He won't speak our language; us hovering will just make his panic worse.” Those around the _torin_ nod and then take several steps away, giving the sleeping being room.

Yellow eyes flicker open and green biotics lash out, throwing Shepard back even further. The Prothean vaults out of the pod, stumbling as they crumple to the ground. Garrus is there immediately, helping the other to their feet. “You....” the Prothean rumbles, eyeing his armored form, “you are.... Turian.”

“And you are Prothean,” Garrus returns causally. “Nice eye color.”

The Prothean blinks at him, somewhat bewildered. “Thank you?” His gaze shifts around the room. “Turian. Human. How odd. I'm surrounded by primitives.”

“Be nice,” Sigrun says with a fanged smirk. “These 'primitives' woke you up.”

The Prothean sighs and rubs at his eyes, lips pursing in what can only be annoyance.

Garrus is ninety percent sure that he's screwed. Why does he always seem to be attracted to good looking aliens with wonderful lips? First Thane, and now Javik. Gods, he's fucked.

He's not even sure if he minds.

**oOo**

Javik settles neatly onto the _Normandy_ , though Shepard does have to warn him about being rude. “I am perfectly capable of speaking Prothean tongue,” they say flatly, “and I will not have you insulting my crew.”

Sigrun snickers, keeping a watchful eye on those who are bringing his ship into the Normandy. “If you so much as scratch her, I will force-feed you your own liver,” he calls. “If I'm feeling generous, I might even hang you from the roof of the cargo bay by your own intestines!” The men surrounding his ship cringe and take a careful step back.

“Sigrun!” Shepard barks. “No threatening my crew!”

He gives them a blank stare. “I built _Eluci_ with my own hands,” he says flatly. “She's been with me for going on thirty years and _I will not have her scratched_.”

Nihlus lets out a low whistle. “Impressive,” he comments.

Saren stands silently nearby, his gaze occasionally flickering towards the ship. “Indeed,” he agrees blithely, trying to not look like he's interested.

Sigrun's mandibles quirk upwards. “Arterius, if you want to look at the code, you may.” The Spectre immediately spins around and vanishes inside of _Eluci._

“You're really going to let him look at it?” Nihlus questions.

“He'll have to get past my code-barriers before he can see the actual coding.”

The younger Spectre pauses and then starts laughing. “Evil.” There's a moment of silence. Then: “Can I see your Weaver?”

With a hum of agreement, Sigrun hands the gun over and watches as Nihlus coos at it, examining every component. “This is amazing. Did you mod it yourself?”

“Yes. My M-7 Lancer as well.”

Nihlus nearly drops the Orb Weaver, head snapping round fast enough that his neck actually makes a cracking sound. “A _Lancer_?” he breathes reverently. “Did I hear that right? _You have a M-7_ _Lancer_?”

Sigrun snorts and pulls it out of its holster, watching with amusement as the Spectre carefully sets Weaver down before taking the Lancer like it's made of spun glass.

“I'm holding an actual M-7 Lancer,” Nihlus whispers, subvocals screaming his delight. Sigrun cracks up with laughter.

“I have more than one. You want?”

“YES. WHERE?”

“Ran into a brigand of pirates. Idiots were mistreating the poor things. They weren't even properly modded. I rescued three.” Nihlus makes a squeaking noise and immediately hugs Sigrun, latching on with all the strength of a barnacle. There's a snarl of fury behind them as Saren storms off of _Eluci_ , mandibles spread with the displeasure of someone who's been foiled.

“ _What_ are you doing, Nihlus?” Saren grinds out.

“Had a spot of trouble getting into my coding?” Sigrun asks almost innocently, a growing smirk on his mandibles. Saren growls wordlessly at him. Nihlus snickers.

_Yes, this is what he was looking for after all._

 


End file.
